Stocking-supporter.



No. 795,944. PATENTED AUG. 1, 1905.

0. w. STIMSON.

STOCKING SUPPORTER. uruoumn'rmnn MAY 14,1904.

INVENTOH M01. {M

A ORNEYS UNITED sTATEs PATENT OFFICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 1, 1905.

Application filed May 14, 1904. $erial No. 207,906.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, CHARLES W. STIMsoN, a citizen of the United States, residing in the city, county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Stocking-Supporters; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to improvements in stocking-supporters; and it consists in the provision, in connection with stocking-supporting tapes or the like, of a pad supported thereon and arranged to be pressed thereby against the abdomen of the wearer; in a novel arrangement of said tapes in connection with said pad whereby downward pressure on the abdomen is avoided and the abdomen is supported and repressed; inanovel construction of said pad and a novel arrangement of the tapes with respect thereto whereby a wide range of adjustment is afforded, and generally in the novel features of invention hereinafter described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

The objects of my invention are to give to the wearer an erect carriage and a graceful figure, to avoid all injurious action, to both repress and support the abdomen, to apply pressure to the pad at a plurality of points so distributed that the pad may act with substantial uniformity, to permit a wide range of adjustment, and to make the stocking-supporter simple, compact, and relatively inexpensive.

' I will now proceed to describe my invention with reference to the'accompanying drawings, illustrating certain embodiments thereof, and will then point out the novel features in claims.

In the said drawings, Figure 1 shows a front view of one form of my improved stocking-supporter applied to a conventional female figure. Fig. 2 is a detail view illustrating an alternative feature of construction thereof. Fig. 3 is another detail view illustrating a further alternative feature of construction.

My improved stocking-supporter comprises a waist-piece 1, which is usually a belt provided with the usual buckle 2 to permit adjustment and facilitate the application of the stocking-supporter. To this belt 1 are secured on opposite sides of the center line tapes 3, adapted to extend obliquely downward and across each other and to be secured each to a stocking on the opposite leg of the wearer.

Other tapes 4 are secured to the belt 1, preferably, but not necessarily, between the points of attachment of tapes 3, and these tapes 4 are adapted to hang downward and to be secured each to the stocking on the corresponding leg of the wearer. These tapes serve to support a pad 5 and also to press the same against the abdomen of the wearer. A convenient means of connecting the pad to the tapes is to provide the pad with central slots 6, through which the tapes 3 may pass, and with other slots 7, through which the tapes 4 may pass. It is not necessary to stitch the pad to the tapes, the friction of the pad against the tapes being sufficient to hold the pad in proper position when once adjusted, and or dinarily it is desirable not to stitch the pad to the tapes in order not to restrict the adjustability of the device; but, if desired, the pad may be stitched to the tapes 3 or to the tapes 4, or to both tapes 3 and 4, as illustrated in Fig. 2.

Obviously the pad may be connected to the tapes in various other manners than by passing the tapes through slots cut in the pad. In Fig. 3 I illustrate a pad provided with loops 8 instead of slots, through which loops the tapes are passed; but this is only one of various other means which may be provided for connecting the pad and tapes without departing from my invention.

The pad may be stiff or flexible, as preferred.

Heretofore it has been old to employ in stocking-supporters a front pad supported by a waist-belt or by attachment to a corset, from which pad hang stocking-supporting tapes. The pull of these tapes on the pad is substantially directly downward or downward and to the sides. The pressure produced by the use of such pads on the abdomen is therefore in the main downward of the more or less flexible nature of the material of which the pad mustbe formed. In my stocking-supporter, however, the pad does not support the stockingsupporting tapes and does not receive any of the pull of such tapes, but, to the contrary, the pad is supported by the tapes and receives only the inward and upward pressure exerted by said tapes upon the abdomen.

It is well known that downward pressure upon the abdomen and near the center thereof, such as may be produced by the former stocking-supporters above mentioned, is injurious. The action of my stocking-supporter, however, is quite different, the pressure upon the pad and thence upon the abdomen being exerted principally by the diagonal tapes 3,

which lying as they do beneath the curve of the abdomen act to support the same so as to repress it without downward pressure. The tapes 3 and 4 crossing as they do distribute the pressure quite uniformly over the pad. Thus tapes 4 exert pressure near the outer edges of the pad and tapes 3 exert pressure on diagonal lines crossing the pad at or near the center thereof. pad at the sides or bulging of the pad in the center is thereby avoided.

As used normally, the tapes 3 will ordinarily be fastened to the stocking Well around toward the outside of the leg, each tape being secured to the stocking of the opposite leg. These tapes will then be approximately parallel to the lines of the groins and the fibers of the external oblique muscles by which the abdomen is mainly supported. The action of the tapes 3 is therefore entirely in harmony with that of the muscles.

It will be noted that after the stocking-supporter is in place the pad may be shifted up or down to a considerable distance without difficulty, this being permitted by the slots or loops of the pad through which the tapes pass. The lines along which pressure is applied may be varied widely to adapt the stocking-supporter to different figures or for other reasons by shifting the points of connection of the tapes 3 to the stockings, and if desired one tape 3 may be attached to its stocking upon the inside of the leg and the other upon the outside of the leg and the pad thereby shifted to a position somewhat to one side of the median line, so that its pressure is exerted at the side rather than at the center. This is often desirable where weakness of the abdominal wall exists at one pointas, for example, after hernia or a surgical operation or when a tumor is present.

It is obvious that my stocking-supporter is susceptible of many variations and modifications, and I do not limit myself to the particular construction and arrangement of the parts herein illustrated and described.

In another application for Letters Patent, filed May 14:, 1904, Serial No. 207,905, I have Relaxation of they described and claimed a stocking-supporter comprising tapes arranged as shown herein, but without the pad, and therefore such invention is not claimed herein.

What I claim is- 1. In a stocking-supporter, the combination with a waist-piece arranged to extend in front of and across the abdomen of the wearer, and crossing stocking-supporting tapes connected thereto on opposite sides of the center thereof, and each adapted, when the stockingsupporter is in use, to extend from such point of connection obliquely downward and across the abdomen to the opposite stocking of the wearer, of a pad mounted on said tapes and arranged to be pressed thereby against the body of the wearer.

2. In a stocking-supporter, the combination with a waist-piece arranged to extend in front of and across the abdomen of the wearer, and two crossing stocking-supporting tapes, each obliquely secured to said Waist-piece on one side of the center thereof and adapted at its lower end for connection to the opposite stocking of the wearer, said tapes adapted when the stocking-supporter is in use to extend from such points of connection to the waist-piece obliquely downward and across the abdomen to the opposite stocking of the wearer, of a pad mounted on said tapes and arranged to be pressed thereby against the body of the wearer.

3. In a stocking-supporter, the combination with a waist-piece, crossing stocking-supporting tapes connected thereto on opposite sides of the center thereof, and each adapted, when the stocking-supporter is in use, to extend from such point of connection obliquely dow nward to the opposite stocking of the wearer, and other stocking-supporting tapes likewise connected to said waist-piece on opposite sides of the center thereof, but each adapted for connection to the corresponding stocking of the wearer, of a pad mounted on said tapes and arranged to be pressed thereby against the body of the wearer.

4. In a stocking-supporter, the combination with a waist-piece, two crossing stocking-supporting tapes, each obliquely secured to said waist-piece on one side of the center thereof and adapted at its lower end for connection.

to the opposite stocking of the' wearer, and other stocking-supporting tapes likewise connected to said waist-piece on opposite sides of the center thereof, but each adapted for connection to the corresponding stocking of the wearer, of a pad mounted on said tapes and arranged to be pressed thereby against the body of the wearer. Y

5. In astocking-supporter, the combination with a waist-piece, crossing stocking-supporting tapes connected thereto on opposite sides of the center thereof, and each adapted, when the stocking-supporter is in use, to extend from such point of connection obliquelydown ward to the opposite stocking of the wearer, and other stocking-supporting tapes secured to the waist-piece on opposite sides of the center. thereof, crossing said first-mentioned tapes, and adapted each for connection to the corresponding stocking of the wearer, of a pad mounted on said tapes and arranged to be pressed thereby against the body of the wearer.

6. In a stocking-Sn pporter, the combination with a waist-piece, two crossing stocking-supporting tapes, each obliquely secured to said waist-piece on one side of the center thereof and adapted at its lower end for connection to the opposite stocking of the wearer, and other stocking-supporting tapes, secured to the waist-piece on opposite sides of the center thereof, crossing said first mentioned tapes, and adapted each for connection to the corresponding stocking of the wearer, of a pad mounted on said tapes and arranged to be pressed thereby against the body of the wearer.

7. In astocking-supporter, the combination with a waist-belt, and crossing stocking-supporting tapes secured thereto on opposite sides of the center thereof and each extending therefrom in adirection approximately parallel to the lines of the groin to the opposite stocking of the wearer and crossing below said belt, of a pad mounted on said tapes and ar ranged to be pressed thereby against the body of the wearer.

8. In astocking-supporter, the combination with a waist-belt, two crossing stocking-supporting tapes secured thereto and each adapted to extend therefrom in a direction approximately parallel to the line of the groin to the opposite stocking of the wearer, and other stocking-supporting tapes likewise secured to said belt, but adapted to extend across said first-mentioned tapes, to the stockings of the wearer, of a pad mounted on said tapes and arranged to be pressed thereby against the body of the wearer.

9. Inastocking-supporter, the combination with a waist-piece, and two stocking-supporting tapes secured thereto on opposite sides of the center line and extending therefrom in different angular directions and crossing below said Waist-piece, of a pad mounted on said tapes and arranged to be pressed thereby against the body of the wearer.

10. In a stocking-supporter, the combination with a waist-belt, two crossing stockingsupporting tapes secured thereto on opposite sides of the center line and each adapted to extend therefrom beneath the abdomen of the wearer to the opposite stocking, and other stocking-supporting tapes likewise secured to said belt, but'aolapted to extend across said first-mentioned tapes, to the stockings of the wearer, of a pad mounted on said tapes and adapted to be pressedv thereby against the body of the wearer.

11. In a stocking-supporter, the combination with a waist-piece, crossing stocking-supporting tapes secured thereto on opposite sides of the center line and each adapted to extend therefrom to the opposite stocking of the wearer, and other stocking-supporting tapes secured to said waist-piece but arranged to hang more directly downward than said first tapes, of a pad mounted on said tapes and adapted to be pressed thereby against the body of the wearer.

12. In a stocking-supporter, the combination with a waist-piece, diagonal stockingsupporting tapes secured thereto and arranged to extend from one side of the median line di agonally across the abdomen to the opposite stocking of the wearer, a pad crossed by said tapes, and other stocking-supporting tapes crossing the pad and arranged to extend substantially longitudinally of the abdomen and likewise secured to said waist-piece. 13. In a stocking-supporter, the combination with a waist-piece, of diagonal stockingsupporting tapes angularly connected thereto and provided with means at their lower ends for connection to stockings, other tapes connected more nearly vertically to said waistpiece and arranged to hang substantially longitudi'nally of the abdomen,and a pad mounted on, and secured to, said last-named tapes.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES W. STIMSON.

Witnesses:

D. HOWARD HAYWOOD, H. M; MARBLE. 

